8 hours Ago
It’s not every day that a large-scale Mexican restaurant from Orange County tries its hand at a big venue in Los Angeles, but that’s what Costa Mesa’s Descanso has done, taking over the massive Callender’s Grille in Mid-Wilshire that closed in 2018 . The LACMA and La Brea Tarpits-adjacent space that opened on January 23 beckons diners in with a massive brick entryway leftover from the previous operator, a small foyer leading into a 20-foot-high bottle shelf, and a circular bar that dominates the center of the 9,000 square-foot room. Operator Rob Arellano first opened Descanso in 2018 in Costa Mesa.
He says he was inspired by childhood trips to Mexico City and Guadalajara with his father, though the food more closely reflects Sinaloan cuisine. Plancha-style tacos are prevalent in Mexico City , while in Sinaloa, charcoal-grilled meats tend to rule the roost . But here in Southern California, street tacos are often prepared on steel top grills where taqueros finish off lengua, buche, suadero, and tripas, making Descanso’s main cooking method more than familiar to locals.
After passing through Descanso’s bar, to the far right, there’s a set of teppanyaki-style planchas in a semi-private space accommodating diners with medium-height counters where cooks prepare meats over steel top grills. To the left, a more casual section with hanging lights conjures Mexican-style al fresco seating (though technically indoors) with another bar-height counter and single plancha that feels like a private taco stand. And the right side is a more formal dining room for seated reservations.
The semi-private plancha room has its own menu format, with two starters of Caesar salad or fideos soup. Choose a main course such as carne asada, pork loin alambre, blackened halibut, or rajas con quero, which are paired with blue corn or flour tortilla, and Mexican-style fried rice. Think Benihana’s meets Javier’s (Benivier’s? Javihana’s?).
There’s also a fully private plancha dining room where groups of up to 10 can get their own personal chef for the evening. The rest of the dining areas feature a typical a la carte menu with a tremendous variety: nachos, guacamole with chips, ceviche campechano with octopus and shrimp, shrimp taquitos, and short rib birria-stuffed empanadas. A dozen kinds of tacos priced between $8.
5 and $18 come fully assembled (but without salsa, which one will need to request), including roasted Anaheim chile, garlic-marinated ribeye, morita chile-marinated octopus, and spit-roasted al pastor over blue corn tortillas. A dozen entree choices share a lot of taco ingredients but are presented as more composed plates, like braised short rib estofado swimming in pinto bean jus or saucy lobster enchiladas covered in a poblano-mango-habanero salsa. Most dishes seem to think more is more, with ample piles of microgreen cilantro, crema Mexicana, and cotija cheese sprinkled at every opportunity.
To finish, the almost runny flan dusted with hibiscus could be one of the better versions in town, while the coconut-topped tres leches is also exemplary. LA’s modern Mexican scene has offered plenty of competition in recent years, including Mexico City-influenced Damian , LA Cha Cha Chá , and Alma at the Grove , as well as Loreto , Ka’Teen , and Casa Madera . Descanso’s purview isn’t quite as regionally specific as Loreto (Baja California) or Ka’Teen (Tulum/Yucatán), but its central location should provide a reliable option for those unwilling to venture to Century City for their fix of Javier’s.
Descanso is open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.
m., Monday to Thursday, until 12 a.m.
on Friday and Saturday. It opens earlier at 11 a.m.
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and closes at 10 p.m. on Sunday.
It’s located at 5773 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA, 90036. Sign up for our newsletter. Check your inbox for a welcome email.
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